wow

Today was Frank's (CSer fr Germany) last day in Singapore. So we went cycling at Pulau Ubin, managed to cover the important sights within 3 hours. Pretty exhausting considering that we went to Bukit Timah Nature reserve the day before to trek the toughest trail that it offered us. It was good excercise for lazy me. I'm sure Frank enjoyed himself as i had to stop countless number of times while he went on taking pictures of the flora and fauna there.

One thing that sets him aside from the other CSers was that he liked asking a lot of questions on Islam. Mudah-mudahan Allah membuka hatinya untuk memeluk agama Islam.

Anyways, i find it interesting that he kept reminding me to do my prayers everytime we were outside. He was afraid i would miss it. (:

In the past, i had this fear of excusing myself just so i could do my prayers in private. Doing my prayers in public was simply out of the question. I was more comfortable praying at home or at the mosque. I was naive. As years went by, i became slightly braver. I dared asking permission from my non-Muslim friend before i prayed in their house. When i worked at Vivocity, i prayed at some quite corner (though ppl sometimes pass through there). Praying at some corner of Changi Airport was normal when i went there during nights off. I tried my best to not miss any prayer while in the army. In Europe, i prayed at my host's home and prayed at Heathrow, Barajas and El Prat airport. I began to realise that, yes, we shouldnt be afraid for what we strongly believe is right. When we need to pray, we pray. As muslims, i believe that we should be proud of our religion. Anyways, people dont make a hoohah when you pray in public in Europe. Unfortunately, that's not the case in singapore.

"Alamak, budak ALIM tengah solat SIOL" Yes, sadly, that's we comment we get from our own people. Orang-orang melayu kita sendiri. ):

Im writing this post not to brang but instead hope that it acts as a reminder to myself and others of the importance of praying 5 times a day no matter where we are.